Coordinated control of standalone and building indoor air quality devices and systems

ABSTRACT

First and second IAQ sensors are located within a building and are configured to measure first and second IAQ parameters, respectively, the first and second IAQ parameter being the same one of: relative humidity; amount of particulate; amount of volatile organic compounds; and amount of carbon dioxide. A mitigation device is separate from an HVAC system and includes a control module configured to turn the mitigation device on and off based on the first IAQ parameter, the second IAQ parameter, and whether the HVAC system is on or off. A mitigation module is configured to selectively turn the HVAC system on and off based on the second IAQ parameter, the first IAQ parameter, and whether the HVAC system is on or off.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/660,475, filed on Apr. 20, 2018. The entire disclosure of theapplication referenced above is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to environmental control systems and moreparticularly to indoor air quality control systems and methods.

BACKGROUND

The background description provided here is for the purpose of generallypresenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently namedinventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, aswell as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify asprior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedlyadmitted as prior art against the present disclosure.

A residential or light commercial HVAC (heating, ventilation, and/or airconditioning) system controls temperature and humidity of a building.Upper and lower temperature limits may be specified by an occupant orowner of the building, such as an employee working in the building or ahomeowner.

A thermostat controls operation of the HVAC system based on a comparisonof the temperature at a thermostat and the target values. The thermostatmay control the HVAC system to heat the building when the temperature isless than the lower temperature limit. The thermostat may control theHVAC system to cool the building when the temperature is greater thanthe upper temperature limit. Heating the building and cooling thebuilding generally decreases humidity, although the HVAC system mayinclude a humidifier that adds humidity to warm air output by the HVACsystem during heating of the building.

SUMMARY

In a feature, an indoor air quality (IAQ) system for a building isdescribed. The IAQ system includes a heating, ventilation, and/or airconditioning (HVAC) system of the building. First and second IAQ sensorsare located within the building and are configured to measure first andsecond IAQ parameters, respectively, the first and second IAQ parameterbeing the same one of: relative humidity (RH) of air; amount ofparticulate of at least a predetermined size present in air; amount ofvolatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in air; and amount of carbondioxide present in air. A mitigation device is separate from the HVACsystem and includes a control module configured to turn the mitigationdevice on and off based on the first IAQ parameter measured by the firstIAQ sensor. A mitigation module is configured to selectively turn theHVAC system of the building on and off based on the second IAQ parametermeasured by the second IAQ sensor. The control module is furtherconfigured to selectively turn the mitigation device on and off furtherbased on at least one of: the second IAQ parameter; and whether the HVACsystem of the building is on or off. The mitigation module is furtherconfigured to selectively turn the HVAC system of the building on andoff further based on at least one of: the first IAQ parameter; andwhether the mitigation device is on or off.

In further features, the mitigation module is configured to: turn theHVAC system of the building on when the second IAQ parameter is greaterthan a first predetermined value; and turn the HVAC system of thebuilding off when the second IAQ parameter is less than a secondpredetermined value that is less than the first predetermined value.

In further features, wherein the mitigation module is configured to turnthe HVAC system of the building on when the first IAQ parameter isgreater than a third predetermined value, wherein the thirdpredetermined value is greater than the second predetermined value.

In further features, the control module is configured to turn themitigation device on and off independently of the first IAQ parameterbased on at least one of (i) the second IAQ parameter and (ii) whetherthe HVAC system of the building is on or off.

In further features, the mitigation module is configured to: turn theHVAC system of the building on in response to the mitigation devicebeing turned on; maintain the HVAC system of the building on while themitigation device is on; and turn the HVAC system of the building off inresponse to the mitigation device being turned off

In further features, the mitigation module is configured to turn theHVAC system of the building on when at least one of: the second IAQparameter is greater than a first predetermined value; and themitigation device is turned on.

In further features, the control module is configured to: turn themitigation device on when the first IAQ parameter is greater than afirst predetermined value; and turn the mitigation device off when thefirst IAQ parameter is less than a second predetermined value that isless than the first predetermined value.

In further features, the control module is configured to turn themitigation device on when the second IAQ parameter is greater than athird predetermined value, where the third predetermined value isgreater than the second predetermined value.

In further features, the mitigation module is configured to turn theHVAC system of the building on and off independently of the second IAQparameter based on at least one of (i) the first IAQ parameter and (ii)whether the mitigation device is on or off

In further features, the control module is configured to: turn themitigation device on in response to the HVAC system of the buildingbeing turned on; maintain the mitigation device on while the HVAC systemof the building is on; and turn the mitigation device off in response tothe HVAC system of the building being turned off.

In further features, the control module is configured to turn themitigation device on when at least one of: the first IAQ parameter isgreater than a first predetermined value; and the HVAC system of thebuilding is turned on.

In a feature, a method includes: by first and second indoor air quality(IAQ) sensors that are located within a building, measuring first andsecond IAQ parameters, respectively, the first and second IAQ parameterbeing the same one of: relative humidity (RH) of air; amount ofparticulate of at least a predetermined size present in air; amount ofvolatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in air; and amount of carbondioxide present in air; turning a mitigation device on and off based onthe first IAQ parameter measured by the first IAQ sensor, where themitigation device is separate from a heating, ventilation, and/or airconditioning (HVAC) system of the building; selectively turning the HVACsystem of the building on and off based on the second IAQ parametermeasured by the second IAQ sensor; selectively turning the mitigationdevice on and off further based on at least one of: the second IAQparameter; and whether the HVAC system of the building is on or off; andselectively turning the HVAC system of the building on and off furtherbased on at least one of: the first IAQ parameter; and whether themitigation device is on or off

In further features, the method further includes: turning the HVACsystem of the building on when the second IAQ parameter is greater thana first predetermined value; and turning the HVAC system of the buildingoff when the second IAQ parameter is less than a second predeterminedvalue that is less than the first predetermined value.

In further features, the method further includes turning the HVAC systemof the building on when the first IAQ parameter is greater than a thirdpredetermined value, where the third predetermined value is greater thanthe second predetermined value.

In further features, the method further includes turning the mitigationdevice on and off independently of the first IAQ parameter based on atleast one of (i) the second IAQ parameter and (ii) whether the HVACsystem of the building is on or off.

In further features, the method further includes: turning the HVACsystem of the building on in response to the mitigation device beingturned on; maintaining the HVAC system of the building on while themitigation device is on; and turning the HVAC system of the building offin response to the mitigation device being turned off.

In further features, the method further includes turning the HVAC systemof the building on when at least one of: the second IAQ parameter isgreater than a first predetermined value; and the mitigation device isturned on.

In further features, the method further includes: turning the mitigationdevice on when the first IAQ parameter is greater than a firstpredetermined value; and turning the mitigation device off when thefirst IAQ parameter is less than a second predetermined value that isless than the first predetermined value.

In further features, the method further includes turning the mitigationdevice on when the second IAQ parameter is greater than a thirdpredetermined value, where the third predetermined value is greater thanthe second predetermined value.

In further features, the method further includes turning the HVAC systemof the building on and off independently of the second IAQ parameterbased on at least one of (i) the first IAQ parameter and (ii) whetherthe mitigation device is on or off.

In further features, the method further includes: turning the mitigationdevice on in response to the HVAC system of the building being turnedon; maintaining the mitigation device on while the HVAC system of thebuilding is on; and turning the mitigation device off in response to theHVAC system of the building being turned off.

In further features, the method further includes turning the mitigationdevice on when at least one of: the first IAQ parameter is greater thana first predetermined value; and the HVAC system of the building isturned on.

Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure will becomeapparent from the detailed description, the claims and the drawings. Thedetailed description and specific examples are intended for purposes ofillustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of thedisclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure will become more fully understood from thedetailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example heating, ventilation, and airconditioning (HVAC) system;

FIG. 2A is a functional block diagram of an air handler unit of anexample HVAC system;

FIGS. 2B and 2C are functional block diagrams of example condenser unitsof example HVAC systems;

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of an example indoor air quality(IAQ) sensor module that can be used with an HVAC system and/or othermitigation devices;

FIGS. 4A-4C are a functional block diagram of an example IAQ controlsystem;

FIG. 5A is a functional block diagram of an example remote monitoringsystem;

FIG. 5B is a functional block diagram of an example monitoring system;

FIGS. 6-9 are example user interfaces displayed by a user computingdevice during execution of an application based on data received from aremote monitoring system;

FIG. 10 includes a functional block diagram of an example implementationof an IAQ control module;

FIGS. 11-14 include example graphs of particulate versus time;

FIG. 15 includes a functional block diagram of an example buildingincluding an IAQ sensor module, an IAQ control module, and an IAQ systemof the building;

FIG. 16 includes a functional block diagram of an building including aroom and a mitigation device located within the room;

FIG. 17 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding the room, the mitigation device located within the room 1604,an IAQ sensor module, an IAQ control module, and an IAQ system of thebuilding;

FIG. 18 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding the room, the mitigation device located within the room, asecond room, a second mitigation device located within the second room,an IAQ sensor module, an IAQ control module, and an IAQ system of thebuilding;

FIG. 19 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding the mitigation device and a second mitigation device;

FIG. 20 includes a flowchart depicting an example method of coordinatingcontrol of multiple mitigation devices; and

FIG. 21 includes a flowchart depicting an example method of coordinatingcontrol of multiple mitigation devices.

In the drawings, reference numbers may be reused to identify similarand/or identical elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

According to the present disclosure, an indoor air quality (IAQ) sensormodule can be used with one or more mitigation devices of a residentialor light commercial HVAC (heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning)system of a building and/or one or more other (e.g., standalone or room)mitigation devices. The IAQ sensor module includes one, more than one,or all of a temperature sensor, a relative humidity (RH) sensor, aparticulate sensor, a volatile organic compound (VOC) sensor, and acarbon dioxide (CO₂) sensor. The IAQ sensor module may also include oneor more other IAQ sensors, such as occupancy, barometric pressure,light, sound, etc. The temperature sensor senses a temperature of air atthe location of the IAQ sensor. The RH sensor measures a RH of air atthe location of the IAQ sensor. The particulate sensor measures anamount (e.g., concentration) of particulate greater than a predeterminedsize in the air at the location of the IAQ sensor. The VOC sensormeasures an amount of VOCs in the air at the location of the IAQ sensor.The carbon dioxide sensor measures an amount of carbon dioxide in theair at the location of the IAQ sensor. Other IAQ sensors would measurean amount of a substance or condition in the air at the location of theIAQ sensor.

The IAQ sensor module is wirelessly connected to a thermostat of theHVAC system, such as via a Bluetooth or WiFi. The IAQ sensor module mayadditionally or alternatively be wirelessly connected to a controlmodule. The IAQ sensor module communicates measurements from itssensors, and optionally, a time and date to the thermostat and/or thecontrol module. The control module and/or the thermostat controlsoperation of the mitigation devices based on the measurements from theIAQ sensor module. For example, the control module and/or the thermostatcontrols operation of the mitigation devices based on maintaining atemperature measured by the IAQ sensor module within upper and lowertemperature limits, based on maintaining a RH measured by the IAQ sensorwithin upper and lower RH limits, based on maintaining the amount ofparticulate in the air at the IAQ sensor module below a predeterminedamount of particulate, based on maintaining the amount of VOCs in theair at the IAQ sensor module below a predetermined amount of VOCs,and/or based on maintaining the amount of carbon dioxide in the air atthe IAQ sensor module below a predetermined amount of carbon dioxide.

The control module and/or the thermostat can provide information on themeasurements of the IAQ sensor and other data (e.g., statuses ofmitigation devices, local outdoor air conditions, etc.) to one or moreuser devices (e.g., of tenants, occupants, customers, contractors, etc.)associated with the building. For example, the building may be asingle-family residence, and the customer may be the homeowner, alandlord, or a tenant. In other implementations, the building may be alight commercial building, and the customer may be the building owner, atenant, or a property management company.

Mitigation devices include mitigation devices and mitigation devicefunctionality of an HVAC system of a building. For example, the HVACsystem of a building can humidity air, dehumidify air, heat air, coolair, reduce particulate in air, reduce VOCs in air, and reduce carbondioxide in air within the building. Mitigation devices also includestandalone mitigation devices, such as standalone heaters, standaloneA/C units, standalone air cleaner/purifiers, standalone humidifiers,standalone dehumidifiers, and standalone ventilation devices.

According to the present disclosure, a control module coordinatesoperation of two or more mitigation devices configured to mitigate thesame parameter. For example, as discussed above, the HVAC system of thebuilding is configured to reduce particulate in air within the buildingvia one or more filters of the HVAC system. A standalone aircleaner/purifier may also be configured to reduce particulate in air(e.g., a room of a predetermined size) within the building. Concurrentuse of both mitigation devices, however, may more quickly andeffectively mitigate the parameter's excursion above a predeterminedvalue or outside of a predetermined range.

As used in this application, the term HVAC can encompass allenvironmental comfort systems in a building, including heating, cooling,humidifying, dehumidifying, and air exchanging and purifying, and coversdevices such as furnaces, heat pumps, humidifiers, dehumidifiers,ventilators, and air conditioners. HVAC systems as described in thisapplication do not necessarily include both heating and airconditioning, and may instead have only one or the other.

In split HVAC systems, an air handler unit is often located indoors, anda condensing unit is often located outdoors. In heat pump systems, thefunction of the air handler unit and the condensing unit are reverseddepending on the mode of the heat pump. As a result, although thepresent disclosure uses the terms air handler unit and condensing unit,the terms indoor unit and outdoor unit could be used instead in thecontext of a heat pump. The terms indoor unit and outdoor unit emphasizethat the physical locations of the components stay the same while theirroles change depending on the mode of the heat pump. A reversing valveselectively reverses the flow of refrigerant from what is shown in FIG.1 depending on whether the system is heating the building or cooling thebuilding in a heat pump system. When the flow of refrigerant isreversed, the roles of the evaporator and condenser are reversed—i.e.,refrigerant evaporation occurs in what is labeled the condenser whilerefrigerant condensation occurs in what is labeled as the evaporator.

The control module and/or the thermostat upload data to a remotelocation. The remote location may be accessible via any suitablenetwork, including the Internet. The remote location includes one ormore computers, which will be referred to as servers. The serversexecute a monitoring system on behalf of a monitoring company.Additionally or alternatively, a user computing device may serve as themonitoring system. The monitoring system receives and processes the datafrom the controller and/or thermostat of customers who have such systemsinstalled. The monitoring system can provide performance information,diagnostic alerts, and error messages to one or more users associatedwith the building and/or third parties, such as designated HVACcontractors.

A server of the monitoring system includes a processor and memory. Thememory stores application code that processes data received from thecontroller and/or the thermostat. The processor executes thisapplication code and stores received data either in the memory or inother forms of storage, including magnetic storage, optical storage,flash memory storage, etc. While the term server is used in thisapplication, the application is not limited to a single server.

A collection of servers may together operate to receive and process datafrom multiple buildings. A load balancing algorithm may be used betweenthe servers to distribute processing and storage. The presentapplication is not limited to servers that are owned, maintained, andhoused by a monitoring company. Although the present disclosuredescribes diagnostics and processing and alerting occurring in a remotemonitoring system, some or all of these functions may be performedlocally using installed equipment and/or customer resources, such as ona customer computer or computers.

Customers and/or HVAC contractors may be notified of current andpredicted issues (e.g., dirty filter) affecting effectiveness orefficiency of the HVAC system and/or the mitigating devices, and mayreceive notifications related to routine maintenance. The methods ofnotification may take the form of push or pull updates to anapplication, which may be executed on a smart phone, tablet, anothertype of mobile device, or on a computer (e.g., laptop or desktop).Notifications may also be viewed using web applications or on localdisplays, such as on the thermostat and/or other displays locatedthroughout the building. Notifications may also include text messages,emails, social networking messages, voicemails, phone calls, etc.

Based on measurements from the control module, the thermostat, and/orthe IAQ sensor module, the monitoring company can determine whethervarious components are operating at their peak performance. Themonitoring company can advise the customer and a contractor whenperformance is reduced. This performance reduction may be measured forthe system as a whole, such as in terms of efficiency, and/or may bemonitored for one or more individual components.

In addition, the monitoring system may detect and/or predict failures ofone or more components of the system. When a failure is detected, thecustomer can be notified and potential remediation steps can be takenimmediately. For example, components of the HVAC system may be shut downto prevent or minimize damage, such as water damage, to HVAC components.A contractor can also be notified that a service call may be required.Depending on the contractual relationship between the customer and thecontractor, the contractor may schedule a service call to the building.

The monitoring system may provide specific information to a contractor,such as identifying information of the customer's components, includingmake and model numbers, as well as indications of the specific partnumbers of components. Based on this information, the contractor canallocate the correct repair personnel that have experience with thespecific components and/or the system. In addition, a service technicianis able to bring replacement parts, avoiding return trips afterdiagnosis.

Depending on the severity of the failure, the customer and/or contractormay be advised of relevant factors in determining whether to repair orreplace some or all of the components. For example only, these factorsmay include relative costs of repair versus replacement, and may includequantitative or qualitative information about advantages of replacementequipment. For example, expected increases in efficiency and/or comfortwith new equipment may be provided. Based on historical usage dataand/or electricity or other commodity prices, the comparison may alsoestimate annual savings resulting from the efficiency improvement.

As mentioned above, the monitoring system may also predict impendingfailures. This allows for preventative maintenance and repair prior toan actual failure of components. Alerts regarding detected or impendingfailures reduce the time when the HVAC system is out of operation andallows for more flexible scheduling for both the customer andcontractor. If the customer is out of town, these alerts may preventdamage from occurring when the customer is not present to detect thefailure of a component. For example, failure of heating components ofthe HVAC system in winter may lead to pipes freezing and bursting.

Alerts regarding potential or impending failures may specify statisticaltimeframes before the failure is expected. For example only, if a sensoris intermittently providing bad data, the monitoring system may specifyan expected amount of time before it is likely that the sensoreffectively stops working due to the prevalence of bad data. Further,the monitoring system may explain, in quantitative or qualitative terms,how the current operation and/or the potential failure will affectoperation of the HVAC system. This enables the customer to prioritizeand budget for repairs.

For the monitoring service, the monitoring company may charge a periodicrate, such as a monthly rate. This charge may be billed directly to thecustomer and/or may be billed to the contractor. The contractor may passalong these charges to the customer and/or may make other arrangements,such as by requiring an up-front payment and/or applying surcharges torepairs and service visits.

The monitoring service allows the customer to remotely monitor real-timedata within the building, outside of the building, and/or controlcomponents of the system, such as setting temperature and RH setpointsand other IAQ setpoints, enabling or disabling heating, cooling,ventilation, air purification, etc. In addition, the customer may beable to track usage data for components of the system and/or historicaldata.

In addition to being uploaded to the remote monitoring service (alsoreferred to as the cloud), monitored data may be transmitted to a localdevice in the building. For example, a smartphone, laptop, orproprietary portable device may receive monitoring information todiagnose problems and receive real-time performance data. Alternatively,data may be uploaded to the cloud and then downloaded onto a localcomputing device, such as via the Internet from an interactive web site.

In FIG. 1, a block diagram of an example HVAC system is presented. Inthis particular example, a forced air system with a gas furnace isshown. Return air is pulled from the building through a filter 104 by acirculator blower 108. The circulator blower 108, also referred to as afan, is controlled by a control module 112. The control module 112receives signals from a thermostat 116. For example only, the thermostat116 may include one or more temperature set points specified by theuser.

The thermostat 116 may direct that the circulator blower 108 be turnedon at all times or only when a heat request or cool request is present(automatic fan mode). In various implementations, the circulator blower108 can operate at one or more discrete speeds or at any speed within apredetermined range. For example, the control module 112 may switch oneor more switching relays (not shown) to control the circulator blower108 and/or to select a speed of the circulator blower 108.

The thermostat 116 provides the heat and/or cool requests to the controlmodule 112. When a heat request is made, the control module 112 causes aburner 120 to ignite. Heat from combustion is introduced to the returnair provided by the circulator blower 108 in a heat exchanger 124. Theheated air is supplied to the building and is referred to as supply air.

The burner 120 may include a pilot light, which is a small constantflame for igniting the primary flame in the burner 120. Alternatively,an intermittent pilot may be used in which a small flame is first litprior to igniting the primary flame in the burner 120. A sparker may beused for an intermittent pilot implementation or for direct burnerignition. Another ignition option includes a hot surface igniter, whichheats a surface to a high enough temperature that, when gas isintroduced, the heated surface initiates combustion of the gas. Fuel forcombustion, such as natural gas, may be provided by a gas valve 128.

The products of combustion are exhausted outside of the building, and aninducer blower 132 may be turned on prior to ignition of the burner 120.In a high efficiency furnace, the products of combustion may not be hotenough to have sufficient buoyancy to exhaust via conduction. Therefore,the inducer blower 132 creates a draft to exhaust the products ofcombustion. The inducer blower 132 may remain running while the burner120 is operating. In addition, the inducer blower 132 may continuerunning for a set period of time after the burner 120 turns off.

A single enclosure, which will be referred to as an air handler unit136, may include the filter 104, the circulator blower 108, the controlmodule 112, the burner 120, the heat exchanger 124, the inducer blower132, an expansion valve 140, an evaporator 144, and a condensate pan146. In various implementations, the air handler unit 136 includes anelectrical heating device (not shown) instead of or in addition to theburner 120. When used in addition to the burner 120, the electricalheating device may provide backup or secondary (extra) heat to theburner 120.

In FIG. 1, the HVAC system includes a split air conditioning system.Refrigerant is circulated through a compressor 148, a condenser 152, theexpansion valve 140, and the evaporator 144. The evaporator 144 isplaced in series with the supply air so that when cooling is desired,the evaporator 144 removes heat from the supply air, thereby cooling thesupply air. During cooling, the evaporator 144 is cold (e.g., below thedew point of the air within the building), which causes water vapor tocondense. This water vapor is collected in the condensate pan 146, whichdrains or is pumped out.

A control module 156 receives a cool request from the control module 112and controls the compressor 148 accordingly. The control module 156 alsocontrols a condenser fan 160, which increases heat exchange between thecondenser 152 and outside air. In such a split system, the compressor148, the condenser 152, the control module 156, and the condenser fan160 are generally located outside of the building, often in a singlecondensing unit 164.

In various implementations, the control module 156 may include a runcapacitor, a start capacitor, and a contactor or relay. In variousimplementations, the start capacitor may be omitted, such as when thecondensing unit 164 includes a scroll compressor instead of areciprocating compressor. The compressor 148 may be a variable-capacitycompressor and may respond to a multiple-level cool request. Forexample, the cool request may indicate a mid-capacity call for coolingor a high-capacity call for cooling. The compressor 148 may vary itscapacity according to the cool request.

The electrical lines provided to the condensing unit 164 may include a240 volt mains power line (not shown) and a 24 volt switched controlline. The 24 volt control line may correspond to the cool request shownin FIG. 1. The 24 volt control line controls operation of the contactor.When the control line indicates that the compressor should be on, thecontactor contacts close, connecting the 240 volt power supply to thecompressor 148. In addition, the contactor may connect the 240 voltpower supply to the condenser fan 160. In various implementations, suchas when the condensing unit 164 is located in the ground as part of ageothermal system, the condenser fan 160 may be omitted. When the 240volt mains power supply arrives in two legs, as is common in the U.S.,the contactor may have two sets of contacts, and can be referred to as adouble-pole single-throw switch.

Typically, the thermostat 116 includes a temperature sensor and arelative humidity (RH) sensor. When in a heating (heat) mode, thethermostat 116 generates a heat request when the temperature measured bythe temperature sensor is less than a lower temperature limit. When in acooling (cool) mode, the thermostat 116 generates a cool request whenthe temperature measured by the temperature sensor is greater than anupper temperature limit.

The upper and lower temperature limits may be set to a setpointtemperature + and − a predetermined amount (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 degreesFahrenheit), respectively. The setpoint temperature may be set to apredetermined temperature by default and may be adjusted by a user.

FIGS. 2A-2B are functional block diagrams of an example monitoringsystem associated with an HVAC system of a building. The air handlerunit 136 of FIG. 1 is shown for reference. The thermostat 116 of FIG. 1is a WiFi thermostat 208 having networking capability.

In many systems, the air handler unit 136 is located inside thebuilding, while the condensing unit 164 is located outside the building.The present disclosure is not limited to that arrangement, however, andapplies to other systems including, as examples only, systems where thecomponents of the air handler unit 136 and the condensing unit 164 arelocated in close proximity to each other or even in a single enclosure.The single enclosure may be located inside or outside of the building.In various implementations, the air handler unit 136 may be located in abasement, garage, or attic. In ground source systems, where heat isexchanged with the earth, the air handler unit 136 and the condensingunit 164 may be located near the earth, such as in a basement,crawlspace, garage, or on the first floor, such as when the first flooris separated from the earth by only a concrete slab.

In FIG. 2A, a transformer 212 can be connected to an AC line in order toprovide AC power to the control module 112 and the thermostat 208. Forexample, the transformer 212 may be a 10-to-1 transformer and thereforeprovide either a 12V or 24V AC supply depending on whether the airhandler unit 136 is operating on nominal 120 volt or nominal 240 voltpower.

The control module 112 controls operation in response to signals fromthe thermostat 208 received over control lines. The control lines mayinclude a call for cool (cool request), a call for heat (heat request),and a call for fan (fan request). The control lines may include a linecorresponding to a state of a reversing valve in heat pump systems.

The control lines may further carry calls for secondary heat and/orsecondary cooling, which may be activated when the primary heating orprimary cooling is insufficient. In dual fuel systems, such as systemsoperating from either electricity or natural gas, control signalsrelated to the selection of the fuel may be monitored. Further,additional status and error signals may be monitored, such as a defroststatus signal, which may be asserted when the compressor is shut off anda defrost heater operates to melt frost from an evaporator.

One or more of these control signals (on the control lines) is alsotransmitted to the condensing unit 164 (shown in FIGS. 2B and 2C). Invarious implementations, the condensing unit 164 may include an ambienttemperature sensor that generates temperature data. When the condensingunit 164 is located outdoors, the ambient temperature represents anoutside (or outdoor) ambient temperature. The temperature sensorsupplying the ambient temperature may be located outside of an enclosureof the condensing unit 164. Alternatively, the temperature sensor may belocated within the enclosure, but exposed to circulating air. In variousimplementations the temperature sensor may be shielded from directsunlight and may be exposed to an air cavity that is not directly heatedby sunlight. Alternatively or additionally, online (includingInternet-based) weather data based on the geographical location of thebuilding may be used to determine sun load, outside ambient airtemperature, relative humidity, particulate, VOCs, carbon dioxide, etc.

In FIG. 2C, an example condensing unit 268 is shown for a heat pumpimplementation. The condensing unit 268 may be configured similarly tothe condensing unit 164 of FIG. 2B. Although referred to as thecondensing unit 268, the mode of the heat pump determines whether thecondenser 152 of the condensing unit 268 is actually operating as acondenser or as an evaporator. A reversing valve 272 is controlled by acontrol module 276 and determines whether the compressor 148 dischargescompressed refrigerant toward the condenser 152 (cooling mode) or awayfrom the condenser 152 (heating mode). The control module 276 controlsthe reversing valve 272 and the compressor 148 based on the controlsignals. The control module 276 may receive power, for example, from thetransformer 212 of the air handler unit 136 or via the incoming AC powerline.

FIG. 3 includes a functional block diagram of an example indoor airquality (IAQ) sensor module 304 that can be used with an HVAC systemand/or one or more other mitigation devices. The IAQ sensor module 304includes one, more than one, or all of: a temperature sensor 308, arelative humidity (RH) sensor 312, a particulate sensor 316, a volatileorganic compounds (VOC) sensor 320, and a carbon dioxide sensor 324. TheIAQ sensor module 304 may also include a sampling module 328 and atransceiver module 332.

A power supply 336 may receive AC power from a standard wall outlet (orreceptacle) 340 via a plug 344. For example, the standard wall outlet340 may provide nominal 120 volt or nominal 240 volt AC power. The powersupply 336 may include an AC to direct current (DC) converter thatconverts the AC power into DC power, such as 5 volt, 12 volt, or 24 voltDC power. The power supply 336 supplies power to the components of theIAQ sensor module 304 including the sensors, the sampling module 328,and the transceiver module 332.

While the example of the power supply 336 being integrated within theIAQ sensor module 304 is provided, the power supply 336 may beintegrated with the plug 344 in various implementations. Also, while theexample of the power supply 336 providing one DC voltage to thecomponents of the IAQ sensor module 304, the power supply 336 mayprovide two or more different DC voltages to different components of theIAQ sensor module 304.

Additionally or alternatively, the power supply 336 may include one ormore batteries or one or more solar cells that supply power to thecomponents of the IAQ sensor module 304. The one or more batteries maybe replaceable or non-replaceable. In the example of the one or morebatteries being non-replaceable, the one or more batteries may bere-chargeable, such as via a standard wall outlet. In this example, theIAQ sensor module 304 may include a charger that charges the one or morebatteries using power supplied, for example, via a standard wall outlet.

The IAQ sensor module 304 is portable and can be moved into differentrooms of a building. The IAQ sensor module 304 could also be placedoutside the building, for example, to measure one or more conditionsoutside of the building, calibration, or for one or more other reasons.The temperature sensor 308 measures a temperature of air at the IAQsensor module 304. The RH sensor 312 measures a relative humidity of airat the IAQ sensor module 304. The particulate sensor 316 measures anamount (e.g., a mass flow rate, such as micrograms (μg) per cubic meter)of particulate in air at the IAQ sensor module 304 having a diameterthat is less than a predetermined size (e.g., 2.5 or 10 micrometers(μm)). The VOC sensor 320 measures an amount (e.g., parts per billion(ppb)) of VOC in air at the IAQ sensor module 304. The carbon dioxidesensor 324 measures an amount (e.g., ppm) of carbon dioxide in air atthe IAQ sensor module 304. The included ones of the temperature sensor308, the RH sensor 312, the particulate sensor 316, the VOC sensor 320,and the carbon dioxide sensor 324 will be referred to collectively asthe IAQ sensors.

The sampling module 328 samples (analog) measurements of the IAQsensors. The sampling module 328 may also digitize and/or store valuesof the measurements of the IAQ sensors. In various implementations, theIAQ sensors may be digital sensors and output digital valuescorresponding to the respective measured parameters. In suchimplementations, the sampling module 328 may perform storage or may beomitted.

The IAQ sensor module 304 may include one or more expansion ports toallow for connection of additional sensors and/or to allow connection toother devices. Examples of other devices include one or more other IAQsensor modules, one or more other types of the IAQ sensors not includedin the IAQ sensor module 304, a home security system, a proprietaryhandheld device for use by contractors, a mobile computing device, andother types of devices.

The transceiver module 332 transmits frames of data corresponding topredetermined periods of time. Each frame of data may include themeasurements of the IAQ sensors over a predetermined period. One or morecalculations may be performed for the data of each frame of data, suchas averaging the measurements of one or more of the IAQ sensors. Eachframe (including the calculations and/or the measurements) may betransmitted to a monitoring system, as discussed further below. Themeasurements of the IAQ sensors may be sampled at a predetermined rate,such as 10 samples per minute or another suitable rate. Each frame maycorrespond to a predetermined number of sets of samples (e.g., 10). Themonitoring system may provide visual representations of the measurementsover predetermined periods of time along with other data, as discussedfurther below.

The transceiver module 332 transmits each frame (including thecalculations and/or the measurements) to an IAQ control module 404and/or the thermostat 208. The transceiver module 332 transmits theframes wirelessly via one or more antennas, such as antenna 348, using aproprietary or standardized, wired or wireless protocol, such asBluetooth, ZigBee (IEEE 802.15.4), 900 Megahertz, 2.4 Gigahertz, WiFi(IEEE 802.11). The IAQ sensor module 304 may communicate directly withthe IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208 or with a separatecomputing device, such as a smartphone, tablet, or another type ofcomputing device. In various implementations, a gateway 408 isimplemented, which creates a wireless network for the IAQ sensor module304, the IAQ control module 404, and the thermostat 208. The gateway 408may also interface with a customer router 412 using a wired or wirelessprotocol, such as Ethernet (IEEE 802.3).

Referring now to FIGS. 4A-4C, functional block diagrams of example IAQcontrol systems are presented. The IAQ control module 404 maycommunicate with the customer router 412 using WiFi. Alternatively, theIAQ control module 404 may communicate with the customer router 412 viathe gateway 408. The thermostat 208 may also communicate with thecustomer router 412 using WiFi or via the gateway 408. In variousimplementations, the IAQ control module 404 and the thermostat 208 maycommunicate directly or via the gateway 408.

The IAQ sensor module 304, the IAQ control module 404, and/or thethermostat 208 transmits data measured by the IAQ sensor module 304 andparameters of the IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208 overa wide area network 416, such as the Internet (referred to as theInternet 416). The IAQ sensor module 304, the IAQ control module 404,and/or the thermostat 208 may access the Internet 416 using the customerrouter 412 of the customer. The customer router 412 may already bepresent to provide Internet access to other devices (not shown) withinthe building, such as a customer computer and/or various other deviceshaving Internet connectivity, such as a DVR (digital video recorder) ora video gaming system.

The IAQ sensor module 304, the IAQ control module 404, and/or thethermostat 208 transmit the data to a remote monitoring system 420 viathe Internet 416 using the customer router 412. Further discussion ofthe remote monitoring system 420 is provided below.

The IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208 control operation(e.g., on, off, speed, etc.) of mitigation devices 424 based on themeasurements from the IAQ sensor module 304, measurements from other IAQsensors, and operation of ones of the mitigation devices 424. Forexample, the measurements of the IAQ sensor module 304 may be providedto the thermostat 208 and the thermostat 208 may control operation ofthe mitigation devices 424 in various implementations (e.g., FIG. 4A).The IAQ control module 404 can be omitted in such implementations. Whilethe example of the thermostat 208 controlling the mitigation devices 424will be discussed, alternatively the IAQ control module 404 may controloperation of the mitigation devices 424 (e.g., FIG. 4B), or thethermostat 208 and the IAQ control module 404 may together control themitigation devices 424 (e.g., FIG. 4C).

The IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208 control andcommunicate with the mitigation devices 424 wirelessly, by wire, using acombination of wireless and wired connections. In the case of wirelesscontrol and communication, the IAQ control module 404, the thermostat208, and the mitigation devices 424 include respective transceivers.

The mitigation devices 424 include: (i) the condensing unit 164, (ii)the air handler unit 136, (iii) an air cleaner/purifier 428, (iv) ahumidifier 432, (v) a dehumidifier 436, (vi) a ventilator 440; (vii) astandalone heater 444; (viii) a standalone A/C device 448; (ix) astandalone humidifier 452; (x) a standalone dehumidifier 456; and (xi) aroom ventilator 460. The humidifier 432 is the humidifier of the airhandler unit 136. The humidifier 452 is a standalone humidifier that canbe powered, for example, via a standard wall outlet or a battery withinthe humidifier 452. The dehumidifier 436 represents dehumidificationthat can be performed using the air handler unit 136 or a combination ofthe air handler unit 136 and the condensing unit 164. The dehumidifier456 is a standalone dehumidifier that can be powered, for example, via astandard wall outlet or a battery within the dehumidifier 456.

As discussed above, the air handler unit 136 can be used to provideheating. The heater 444 is a standalone heater that can be powered, forexample, via a standard wall outlet or a battery within the heater 444.The air handler unit 136 and the condensing unit 164 can be usedtogether to provide cooling. The A/C device 448 is a standalone A/Cdevice that can be powered, for example, via a standard wall outlet or abattery within the A/C device 448.

The air handler unit 136 can function as an air cleaner/purifier tofilter particulate and to reduce (or at least disperse) VOCs and carbondioxide, as discussed above. The air cleaner/purifier 428 is astandalone air cleaner/purifier that can be powered, for example, via astandard wall outlet or a battery within the air cleaner/purifier 428.The air cleaner/purifier 428 draws in air and forces the air through afilter before expelling filtered air to the building. The filter may berated (e.g., minimum efficiency reporting value, MERV) to remove apredetermined amount (e.g., 95%) of particulate of the size measured bythe particulate sensor 316. For example, the filter may have a MERVrating of 12 or greater.

Operation of the air cleaner/purifier 428 may include whether the aircleaner/purifier 428 is on or off and, when on, a speed of the aircleaner/purifier 428. The air cleaner/purifier 428 may have a singlespeed or multiple discrete speeds. Operation of the air cleaner/purifier428 may be controlled by a control module of the air cleaner/purifier428 and/or by wire or wirelessly, for example, by the IAQ control module404. Examples of wireless communication and control include, but are notlimited to, Bluetooth connections and WiFi connections. For exampleonly, The control module of the air cleaner/purifier 428 and the IAQcontrol module 404 may control whether the air cleaner/purifier 428 ison or off and, if on, the speed of the air cleaner/purifier 428.

As one example, the control module of the air cleaner/purifier 428 orthe IAQ control module 404 may turn the air cleaner/purifier 428 on whenan amount of particulate measured by a particulate sensor is greaterthan a first predetermined amount of particulate. The control module ofthe air cleaner/purifier 428 or the IAQ control module 404 may leave theair cleaner/purifier 428 on until the amount of particulate measured bythe particulate sensor is less than a second predetermined amount ofparticulate that is less than the first predetermined amount ofparticulate. The control module of the air cleaner/purifier 428 or theIAQ control module 404 may turn the air cleaner/purifier 428 off whenthe amount of particulate measured by the particulate sensor is lessthan the second predetermined amount of particulate. In variousimplementations, the control module of the air cleaner/purifier 428 orthe IAQ control module 404 may vary the speed of the aircleaner/purifier 428 based on the amount of particulate measured by theparticulate sensor. For example, the control module of the aircleaner/purifier 428 or the IAQ control module 404 may increase thespeed of the air cleaner/purifier 428 as the amount of particulateincreases and vice versa.

The humidifier 432 humidifies air within the building. For example, thehumidifier 432 may add moisture to the supply air before the supply airis output from vents to the building. The humidifier 432 may addmoisture to air, for example, by supplying water to a medium (e.g., apad) and forcing air (e.g., supply air) through the hydrated medium.Alternatively, the humidifier 432 may spray water in the form of mistinto air (e.g., supply air).

Operation of the humidifier 432 may include whether the humidifier 432is on or off.

In various implementations, operation of the humidifier 432 may alsoinclude a humidification rate (e.g., an amount of water supplied to thepad or into the air as mist). The humidifier 432 may be configured toprovide only a single humidification rate or multiple differenthumidification rates.

Operation of the humidifier 432 may be controlled via wire or wirelesslyby the thermostat 208. For example only, the thermostat 208 may control(by wire) whether the humidifier 432 included with the air handler unit136 is on or off. Examples of wireless communication include, but arenot limited to, Bluetooth connections and WiFi connections. For exampleonly, the thermostat 208 may turn the humidifier 432 on when the RHmeasured by an RH sensor is less than a first predetermined RH. Thethermostat 208 may leave the humidifier 432 on until the RH measured bythe RH sensor is greater than a second predetermined RH that is greaterthan the first predetermined RH. The thermostat 208 may turn thehumidifier 432 off when the RH measured by the RH sensor is greater thanthe second predetermined RH.

The humidifier 452 humidifies air within the building, such as airwithin a room of the humidifier 452. The humidifier 452 may add moistureto air, for example, by supplying water to a medium (e.g., a pad) andforcing air through the hydrated medium. Alternatively, the humidifier432 may spray water in the form of mist into air (e.g., supply air).

Operation of the humidifier 452 may include whether the humidifier 452is on or off. In various implementations, operation of the humidifier452 may also include a humidification rate (e.g., an amount of watersupplied to the pad or into the air as mist). The humidifier 452 may beconfigured to provide only a single humidification rate or multipledifferent humidification rates.

Operation of the humidifier 452 may be controlled by a control module ofthe humidifier 452 and/or by wire or wirelessly, for example, by the IAQcontrol module 404. Examples of wireless communication and controlinclude, but are not limited to, Bluetooth connections and WiFiconnections. For example only, the control module of the humidifier 452or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the humidifier 452 on when the RHmeasured by a RH sensor is less than a first predetermined RH. Thecontrol module of the humidifier 452 or the IAQ control module 404 mayleave the humidifier 452 on until the RH measured by the RH sensor isgreater than a second predetermined RH that is greater than the firstpredetermined RH. The control module of the humidifier 452 or the IAQcontrol module 404 may turn the humidifier 432 off when the RH measuredby the RH sensor is greater than the second predetermined RH.

The dehumidifier 436 dehumidifies (i.e., removes humidity from) airwithin the building. The dehumidifier 436 may be included with the airhandler unit 136. For example, the dehumidifier 436 may draw moisturefrom the supply air (or add dry air to the supply air) before the supplyair is output from vents to the building. The dehumidifier 436 may notbe implemented as a separate device and dehumidification may be providedvia operation of the condensing unit 164, the burner 120, and/or thecirculator blower 108. Operation of the dehumidifier 436 may includewhether the dehumidifier 436 is on or off

Operation of the dehumidifier 436 may be controlled via wire orwirelessly by the thermostat 208. For example only, the thermostat 208may control (by wire) whether the dehumidifier 436 included with the airhandler unit 136 is on or off. As another example, the thermostat 208may wirelessly control whether the dehumidifier 436, implemented as astandalone device, is on or off. For example only, the thermostat 208may turn the dehumidifier 436 on when the RH measured by the RH sensor312 is greater than a third predetermined RH. The third predetermined RHmay be the same as the second predetermined RH or different than (e.g.,greater than) the second predetermined RH. The thermostat 208 may leavethe dehumidifier 436 on until the RH measured by the RH sensor 312 isless than a fourth predetermined RH that is less than the thirdpredetermined RH. The thermostat 208 may turn the dehumidifier 436 offwhen the RH measured by the RH sensor 312 is less than the fourthpredetermined RH. The fourth predetermined RH may be the same as thefirst predetermined RH or different than (e.g., greater than) the firstpredetermined RH.

The dehumidifier 456 humidifies air within the building, such as airwithin a room of the dehumidifier 456. The dehumidifier 456 may removemoisture from air, for example, by forcing air through a heat exchanger.

Operation of the dehumidifier 456 may include whether the dehumidifier456 is on or off In various implementations, operation of thedehumidifier 456 may also include a dehumidification rate. Thedehumidifier 456 may be configured to provide only a singledehumidification rate or multiple different dehumidification rates.

Operation of the dehumidifier 456 may be controlled by a control moduleof the dehumidifier 456 and/or by wire or wirelessly, for example, bythe IAQ control module 404.

Examples of wireless communication and control include, but are notlimited to, Bluetooth connections and WiFi connections. For exampleonly, the control module of the dehumidifier 456 or the IAQ controlmodule 404 may turn the dehumidifier 456 on when the RH measured by a RHsensor is greater than the third predetermined RH. The control module ofthe dehumidifier 456 or the IAQ control module 404 may leave thedehumidifier 456 on until the RH measured by the RH sensor is less thanthe fourth predetermined RH. The control module of the dehumidifier 456or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the dehumidifier 456 off when theRH measured by the RH sensor is less than the fourth predetermined RH.

The ventilator 440 vents air from within the building out of thebuilding. This also passively draws air from outside of the buildinginto the building. The ventilator 440 may be included with the airhandler unit 136 (e.g., the inducer blower 132). Operation of theventilator 440 may include whether the ventilator 440 is on or off and,when on, a speed. The ventilator 440 may be configured to operate at asingle speed or multiple different speeds.

Operation of the ventilator 440 may be controlled by a control module ofthe ventilator 440 or by wire or wirelessly, for example, by the IAQcontrol module 404. Examples of wireless communication include, but arenot limited to, Bluetooth connections and WiFi connections. For exampleonly, the control module of the ventilator 440 or the IAQ control module404 may turn the ventilator 440 on when an amount of VOCs measured by aVOC sensor is greater than a first predetermined amount of VOCs. Thecontrol module of the ventilator 440 or the IAQ control module 404 mayleave the ventilator 440 on until the amount of VOCs measured by the VOCsensor is less than a second predetermined amount of VOCs that is lessthan the first predetermined amount of VOCs. The control module of theventilator 440 or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the ventilator 440off when the amount of VOCs measured by the VOC sensor is less than thesecond predetermined amount of VOCs.

Additionally or alternatively, the control module of the ventilator 440or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the ventilator 440 on when anamount of carbon dioxide measured by a carbon dioxide sensor is greaterthan a first predetermined amount of carbon dioxide. The control moduleof the ventilator 440 or the IAQ control module 404 may leave theventilator 440 on until the amount of carbon dioxide measured by thecarbon dioxide sensor is less than a second predetermined amount ofcarbon dioxide that is less than the first predetermined amount ofcarbon dioxide. The control module of the ventilator 440 or the IAQcontrol module 404 may turn the ventilator 440 off when the amount ofcarbon dioxide measured by the carbon dioxide sensor is less than thesecond predetermined amount of carbon dioxide.

The room ventilator 460 also vents air from within the building out ofthe building. This also passively draws air from outside of the buildinginto the building. The room ventilator 460 may be, for example, a rangehood fan, a bathroom fan, or another type of ventilator. Operation ofthe room ventilator 460 may include whether the room ventilator 460 ison or off and, when on, a speed. The room ventilator 460 may beconfigured to operate at a single speed or multiple different speeds.

Operation of the room ventilator 460 may be controlled by a controlmodule of the room ventilator 460 or by wire or wirelessly, for example,by the IAQ control module 404. Examples of wireless communicationinclude, but are not limited to, Bluetooth connections and WiFiconnections. For example only, the control module of the room ventilator460 or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the room ventilator 460 onwhen an amount of VOCs measured by a VOC sensor is greater than a firstpredetermined amount of VOCs. The control module of the room ventilator460 or the IAQ control module 404 may leave the room ventilator 460 onuntil the amount of VOCs measured by the VOC sensor is less than asecond predetermined amount of VOCs that is less than the firstpredetermined amount of VOCs. The control module of the room ventilator460 or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the room ventilator 460 offwhen the amount of VOCs measured by the VOC sensor is less than thesecond predetermined amount of VOCs.

Additionally or alternatively, the control module of the room ventilator460 or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the room ventilator 460 onwhen an amount of carbon dioxide measured by a carbon dioxide sensor isgreater than a first predetermined amount of carbon dioxide. The controlmodule of the room ventilator 460 or the IAQ control module 404 mayleave the room ventilator 460 on until the amount of carbon dioxidemeasured by the carbon dioxide sensor is less than a secondpredetermined amount of carbon dioxide that is less than the firstpredetermined amount of carbon dioxide. The control module of the roomventilator 460 or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the roomventilator 460 off when the amount of carbon dioxide measured by thecarbon dioxide sensor is less than the second predetermined amount ofcarbon dioxide.

The heater 444 heats (i.e., warms, adds heat to) air within thebuilding, such as air within a room of the heater 444. The heater 444may heat the air, for example, via one or more electric heating devices.The heater 444 may include a fan or a blower that increases airflowthrough/past the one or more electric heating devices.

Operation of the heater 444 may include whether the heater 444 is on oroff. In various implementations, operation of the heater 444 may alsoinclude a heating rate. The heater 444 may be configured to provide onlya single heating rate or multiple different heating rates.

Operation of the heater 444 may be controlled by a control module of theheater 444 and wirelessly, for example, by the IAQ control module 404.For example only, the control module of the heater 444 or the IAQcontrol module 404 may turn the heater 444 on when a temperaturemeasured by a temperature sensor is less than a first predeterminedtemperature. The control module of the heater 444 or the IAQ controlmodule 404 may leave the heater 444 on until the temperature measured bythe temperature sensor is greater than a second predeterminedtemperature. The control module of the heater 444 or the IAQ controlmodule 404 may turn the heater 444 off when the temperature measured bythe temperature sensor is greater than the second predeterminedtemperature.

The A/C device 448 cools (i.e., removes heat from) air within thebuilding, such as air within a room of the A/C device 448. The A/Cdevice 448 may cool the air, for example, via a heat exchanger. The A/Cdevice 448 includes a fan or a blower that increases airflowthrough/past the heat exchanger. Operation of the A/C device 448 mayinclude whether the A/C device 448 is on or off. In variousimplementations, operation of the A/C device 448 may also include acooling rate. The A/C device 448 may be configured to provide only asingle cooling rate or multiple different cooling rates.

Operation of the A/C device 448 may be controlled by a control module ofthe A/C device 448 and wirelessly, for example, by the IAQ controlmodule 404. For example only, the control module of the A/C device 448or the IAQ control module 404 may turn the A/C device 448 on when atemperature measured by a temperature sensor is less than a thirdpredetermined temperature (that may be less than or the same as thesecond predetermined temperature). The control module of the A/C device448 or the IAQ control module 404 may leave the A/C device 448 on untilthe temperature measured by the temperature sensor is less than a fourthpredetermined temperature that is less than the third predeterminedtemperature. The control module of the A/C device 448 or the IAQ controlmodule 404 may turn the A/C device 448 off when the temperature measuredby the temperature sensor is less than the fourth predeterminedtemperature.

The mitigation devices described above are only described as example.One or more of the example mitigation devices may be omitted. One ormore other types of mitigation devices may be included. Additionally,while the example of only one of each type of mitigation device isprovided, two or more of a given type of mitigation device may beincluded and controlled.

Changes in temperature and/or humidity also cause changes inparticulate, VOCs, and/or carbon dioxide. For example, a change intemperature may cause a change in VOCs, RH, particulate, and/or carbondioxide. As another example, a change in RH may cause a change inparticulate, VOCs, and/or carbon dioxide. For example, particulate mayincrease as RH increases and vice versa.

The thermostat 208 and the IAQ control module 404 therefore controloperation of the mitigation devices 424 based on all of the parametersmeasured by the IAQ sensor module 304 in an attempt to: adjust thetemperature within a predetermined temperature range, adjust the RHwithin a predetermined RH range, adjust the amount of particulate (ifmeasured) to less than a predetermined amount of particulate, adjust theamount of VOCs (if measured) to less than a predetermined amount ofVOCs, and to adjust the amount of carbon dioxide (if measured) to lessthan a predetermined amount of carbon dioxide.

FIG. 5A includes a functional block diagram of an example monitoringsystem. In FIG. 5A, the IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208are shown transmitting, using the customer router 412, data to theremote monitoring system 420 via the Internet 416. In otherimplementations, the IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208may transmit the data to an external wireless receiver. The externalwireless receiver may be a proprietary receiver for a neighborhood inwhich the building is located, or may be an infrastructure receiver,such as a metropolitan area network (such as WiMAX), a WiFi accesspoint, or a mobile phone base station.

The remote monitoring system 420 includes a monitoring server 508 thatreceives data from the IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208and maintains and verifies network continuity with the IAQ controlmodule 404 and/or the thermostat 208. The monitoring server 508 executesvarious algorithms to store setpoints for the building and to storemeasurements from the thermostat 208 and/or the IAQ sensor module 304taken over time.

The monitoring server 508 may notify a review server 512 when one ormore predetermined conditions are satisfied. This programmaticassessment may be referred to as an advisory. Some or all advisories maybe triaged by a technician to reduce false positives and potentiallysupplement or modify data corresponding to the advisory. For example, atechnician device 516 operated by a technician may be used to review theadvisory and to monitor data (in various implementations, in real-time)from the IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208 via themonitoring server 508.

A technician using the technician device 516 may review the advisory. Ifthe technician determines that a problem or fault is either alreadypresent or impending, the technician instructs the review server 512 tosend an alert to a customer device 524 that is associated with thebuilding. The technician may determine that, although a problem or faultis present, the cause is more likely to be something different thanspecified by the automated advisory. The technician can therefore issuea different alert or modify the advisory before issuing an alert basedon the advisory. The technician may also annotate the alert sent to thecustomer device 524 with additional information that may be helpful inidentifying the urgency of addressing the alert and presenting data thatmay be useful for diagnosis or troubleshooting.

In various implementations, minor problems may not be reported to thecustomer device 524 so as not to alarm the customer or inundate thecustomer with alerts. The review server 512 (or a technician) maydetermine whether a problem is minor based on a threshold. For example,an efficiency decrease greater than a predetermined threshold may bereported to the customer device 524, while an efficiency decrease lessthan the predetermined threshold may not be reported to the customerdevice 524.

In various implementations, the technician device 516 may be remote fromthe remote monitoring system 420 but connected via a wide area network.For example only, the technician device 516 may include a computingdevice such as a laptop, desktop, smartphone, or tablet.

Using the customer device 524 executing an application, the customer canaccess a customer portal 528, which provides historical and real-timedata from the IAQ control module 404 and/or the thermostat 208. Thecustomer portal 528 may also provide setpoints and predetermined rangesfor each of the measurements, local outdoor air quality data, statusesof the mitigation devices 424 (e.g., on or off), and other data to thecustomer device 524. Via the customer device 524, the customer maychange the setpoints and predetermined ranges. The monitoring server 508transmits changed setpoints and predetermined ranges to the thermostat208 and/or the IAQ control module 404 for use in controlling operationof the mitigation devices 424.

The remote monitoring system 420 includes a local data server 520 thatobtains local data at (outside) the building. The local data server 520may obtain the local data from one or more local data sources 532 via awide area network, such as the internet 416, using a geographicallocation of the building. The geographical location may be, for example,an address, zip code, coordinates, or other geographical identifier ofthe building. The remote monitoring system 420 may obtain thegeographical location of the building, for example, via the customerdevice 524 before providing data to the customer device 524. The localdata includes, for example, air temperature within a predeterminedgeographical area including the geographical location of the building,RH within the predetermined geographical area, amount of VOCs in the airwithin the predetermined geographical area, amount of particulate of thepredetermined size measured by the particulate sensor 316 within thepredetermined geographical area, and amount of carbon dioxide within thepredetermined geographical area.

FIG. 5B includes a functional block diagram of an example monitoringsystem where the customer device 524 serves as a monitoring system andprovides the functionality of the remote monitoring system 420. Thethermostat 208 and/or the IAQ control module 404 transmit data to thecustomer device 524 wirelessly, such as via a Bluetooth connection,WiFi, or another wireless connection. The customer device 524 may obtainthe local data from the local data sources 532 via a wide area network,such as the internet 416. Alternatively, the IAQ control module 404 orthe thermostat 208 may serve as a monitoring system and provide thefunctionality of the remote monitoring system 420.

FIG. 6 includes an example user interface displayed by the customerdevice 524 during execution of the application based on data from thecustomer portal 528. It should be understood that the followingfunctions are performed by the customer device 524 during execution ofthe application.

As shown in FIG. 6, the customer device 524 may display real-time valuesof the temperature, RH, amount of VOCs, amount of particulate, andamount of carbon dioxide (CO2) measured by the IAQ sensor module 304. InFIG. 6, these are illustrated in the row labeled “indoor” as theyrepresent parameters within the building. The real-time values may bereceived by the customer device 524 from the monitoring server 508 viathe customer portal 528.

The customer device 524 may also display real-time values of thetemperature, RH, amount of VOCs, amount of particulate, and amount ofcarbon dioxide (CO2) measured outside of the building but within thepredetermined geographical area including the geographical area of thebuilding. In FIG. 6, these are illustrated in the row labeled “outdoor”as they represent parameters outside of the building. The real-timevalues may be received by the customer device 524 from the monitoringserver 508 via the customer portal 528.

The customer device 524 may also display present setpoints for beginningheating (Heat) of the building, cooling (Cool) of the building,humidification (Humidify), dehumidification (Dehumidify), VOC removal(VOCs), particulate removal (Particulate), and carbon dioxide removal(Carbon Dioxide). In FIG. 6, these setpoints are illustrated in the rowlabeled “setpoints” as they represent setpoints for beginning associatedmitigation actions within the building. The present setpoints may bereceived by the customer device 524 from the monitoring server 508 viathe customer portal 528.

A predetermined range for a measurement may be set based on the setpointfor a measurement. For example, a predetermined range for heating may beset to the temperature setpoint for heating plus and minus apredetermined amount. A predetermined range for cooling may be set tothe temperature setpoint for cooling plus and minus a predeterminedamount. The predetermined amount may be user adjustable in variousimplementations.

The customer device 524 also allows a user to adjust one or more of thepresent setpoints via the customer device 524. For example, the customerdevice 524 may provide positive and negative adjustment inputs inassociation with one, more than one, or all of the setpoints to allowfor adjustment of the present setpoints. FIG. 6 includes the exampleof + serving as the positive adjustment input and − serving as thenegative adjustment input. Adjustment inputs labeled and provideddifferently, however, may be used.

In response to receipt of input indicative of user interaction (e.g.,touching, clicking, etc.) with an adjustment input associated with asetpoint, the customer device 524 may transmit a command to themonitoring server 508 to adjust (i.e., increment or decrement) thesetpoint by a predetermined amount. For example, in response to receiptof input indicative of user interaction (e.g., touching, clicking, etc.)with the positive adjustment input associated with the heatingtemperature setpoint, the customer device 524 may transmit a command tothe monitoring server 508 to increment the heating temperature setpointby a first predetermined amount. In response to receipt of inputindicative of user interaction (e.g., touching, clicking, etc.) with thenegative adjustment input associated with the heating temperaturesetpoint, the customer device 524 may transmit a command to themonitoring server 508 to decrement the heating temperature setpoint bythe first predetermined amount. As another example, in response toreceipt of input indicative of user interaction (e.g., touching,clicking, etc.) with the positive adjustment input associated with thehumidification RH setpoint, the customer device 524 may transmit acommand to the monitoring server 508 to increment the humidification RHsetpoint by a second predetermined amount. In response to receipt ofinput indicative of user interaction (e.g., touching, clicking, etc.)with the negative adjustment input associated with the humidification RHsetpoint, the customer device 524 may transmit a command to themonitoring server 508 to decrement the humidification RH setpoint by thesecond predetermined amount.

The monitoring server 508 relays (transmits) received commands foradjusting setpoints to the thermostat 208 and/or the IAQ control module404 via the internet 416. Alternatively, the customer device 524 maytransmit commands for adjusting setpoints to the thermostat 208 and/orthe IAQ control module 404 directly or via the internet 416. Thethermostat 208 and/or the IAQ control module 404 adjust the associatedsetpoints in response to the commands received from the monitoringserver 508.

As discussed above, one or more than one IAQ sensor module 304 may beconcurrently used within the building, such as in different rooms of thebuilding. FIG. 7 includes an example user interface displayed by thecustomer device 524 during execution of the application when thebuilding includes multiple IAQ sensor modules. In the example of FIG. 7,the measurements from each IAQ sensor module are shown in a separatecolumn. In various implementations, a user, via the customer device 524,may re-name the columns, such as to names that are descriptive of thelocation of the IAQ sensor modules, respectively.

As also discussed above, one or more of the IAQ sensors may be omittedfrom an IAQ sensor module. The temperature, relative humidity, and VOCsof zero in the example of FIG. 7 are examples only and may not beindicative of actual conditions within a building.

FIG. 8 includes an example user interface displayed by the customerdevice 524 during execution of the application based on additional dataindicative of present statuses of control modes and present (operation)statuses of various devices and modes of devices of the building. Thepresent statuses may be, for example, on or off. The present status of acontrol mode, device, or mode of a device may be on (currently in use)or off (not currently in use). One type of indicator may be used toindicate a present status of on, while another type of indicator may beused to indicate a present status of off. The customer device 524 maydisplay the additional data concurrently with the data from one or moreIAQ modules, the local data, and/or the setpoint data.

The customer device 524 selectively displays measurements of one or moreIAQ sensor modules, local data, control modes, and/or statuses from apredetermined period of time. The predetermined period of time may be,for example, the present day, a predetermined number of days (includingor not including the present day), a predetermined number of hoursbefore a present time, a predetermined number of minutes before thepresent time, or another suitable period. By default, a predeterminedperiod may be selected (e.g., the present day), but a user may select adifferent predetermined period and the customer device 524 may displaythe data for the selected predetermined period.

FIG. 9 includes an example user interface displayed by the customerdevice 524 during execution of the application for the present day (from12:01 pm of the present day to the present time (approximately 10 pm inthis example)). The customer device 524 displays data selected by a userof the customer device 524. By default, all data may be selected, but auser may select less than all of the data to be displayed, and thecustomer device 524 may display only the selected data.

For example, in FIG. 9, only outdoor temperature (from the local data),outdoor RH (from the local data), indoor temperature (from the IAQsensor module 304), indoor RH (from the IAQ sensor module 304), andparticulate (from the IAQ sensor module 304) are graphed over time.Indicators of the statuses of the cooling mode, the heating mode, anduse of the circulator blower 108 are also concurrently shown over time.Indoor Carbon dioxide (from the IAQ sensor module 304, if measured) andindoor VOCs (from the IAQ sensor module 304, if measures) are notgraphed over time in this example.

The customer device 524 selectively displays a user interface for userselection of a priority for mitigating deviations in IAQ parameters. Forexample, the customer device 524 may display a user interface thatallows user assignment of an order of prioritization for: (i)temperature control: (ii) RH control; (iii) particulate control; (vi)VOC control; and (v) carbon dioxide control. Temperature control mayrefer to maintaining, as much as possible, the temperature within thebuilding within a predetermined temperature range. RH control may referto maintaining, as much as possible, the RH within the building within apredetermined temperature range. Particulate control may refer tomaintaining, as much as possible, the amount of particulate within thebuilding less than a predetermined amount of particulate. VOC controlmay refer to maintaining, as much as possible, the amount of VOCs withinthe building less than a predetermined amount of VOCs. Carbon dioxidecontrol may refer to maintaining, as much as possible, the amount ofcarbon dioxide within the building less than a predetermined amount ofcarbon dioxide. The order of prioritization for (i)-(v) may be initiallypreset, but may be user selected, as stated above.

The thermostat 208 and/or the IAQ control module 404 may control themitigation devices 424 based on the prioritization (order). For example,when particulate control is the first priority, the thermostat 208 maycontrol the mitigation devices 424 to decrease particulate as quickly aspossible as opposed to, for example, controlling the mitigation devices424 to more quickly adjust temperature or RH or to more quickly decreasethe amount of VOCs and/or the amount of carbon dioxide.

The user interfaces provided by the customer device 524 provide visualinformation to the user regarding real-time measurements, historicalmeasurements over a period of time, trends, and efficacy of IAQmitigation and control. The user interfaces also enable the user toadjust setpoints to be used to control the mitigation devices 424 tocontrol comfort and IAQ within the building. The user interfaces alsoenable the user to adjust prioritization in which IAQ conditions aremitigated. All of the above improves IAQ within the building and userexperience regarding IAQ within the building.

FIG. 10 includes a block diagram of an example implementation of amitigation system using the example of the IAQ control module 404. Whilethe example of the IAQ control module 404 is provided for purposes ofdiscussion, the modules of the IAQ control module 404 may alternativelybe implemented within the thermostat 208 or within a combination of thethermostat 208 and the IAQ control module 404.

A mitigation module 1004 coordinates control of operation of sets ofmitigation devices that mitigate the same IAQ parameter. For example,the mitigation module 1004 coordinates operation of the aircleaner/purifier 428 with operation of the circulator blower 108 of theair handler unit 136 for reducing particulate and/or VOCs. Additionallyor alternatively, the mitigation module 1004 coordinates operation ofthe heating function of the air handler unit 136 with the heater 444 forheating. Additionally or alternatively, the mitigation module 1004coordinates operation of the cooling function of the condensing unit 164and the air handler unit 136 with the A/C device 448 for cooling.Additionally or alternatively, the mitigation module 1004 coordinatesoperation of the humidifier 432 with the humidifier 452 forhumidification. Additionally or alternatively, the mitigation module1004 coordinates operation of the dehumidifier 436 with the dehumidifier456 for dehumidification. Additionally or alternatively, the mitigationmodule 1004 coordinates operation of the ventilator 440 with the roomventilator 460 for reducing carbon dioxide and/or VOCs.

The mitigation module 1004 controls operation of the mitigation devicesbased on measured IAQ parameters and primary/secondary settings for IAQsensors or mitigation devices. The primary/secondary settings may be setto predetermined settings by default. A settings module 1008 may updatethe primary/secondary settings based on user input, such as to thecustomer device 524 and/or the thermostat 208.

In various implementations, the settings module 1008 may set theprimary/secondary settings based on a present day (or date) and/or apresent time. For example, the settings module 1008 may set theprimary/secondary settings to a first set of primary/secondary settingsbetween predetermined times (e.g., from 9 pm to the following 7 amdaily) and to a second set of primary/secondary settings otherwise(e.g., from 7:01 am to the following 8:59 pm daily). In this manner, thesettings module 1008 may set a first sensor module located in a firstroom (e.g., a bedroom) as the primary sensor (and a single room deviceset as the primary mitigation device) and a second sensor module locatedin a second room (e.g., a living room) to be a secondary sensor (and thewhole-home device set as the secondary mitigation device) during nighttime hours (e.g., from 9 pm to the following 7 am daily), as the firstset of primary/secondary settings, to ensure user comfort duringsleeping hours. During the day (e.g., from 7:01 am to the following 8:59pm daily), the settings module 1008 may designate the second sensormodule located in the second (e.g., living) room to be the primarysensor (and the whole-home device being the primary mitigation device)and the first sensor module located in the first room (e.g., bedroom) tobe the secondary sensor (and the single room device being the secondarymitigation device) to ensure a user's comfort while occupants are awakeand moving about the building. The first set, the second set, the times,and the days may be set, for example, based on user input, such as tothe customer device 524 and/or the thermostat 208.

The primary/secondary settings may specify which one of a set of two ormore mitigation devices for mitigating the same IAQ parameter is aprimary mitigation device of that set of two or more mitigation devices.The remaining mitigation devices of that set are considered secondarymitigation devices. For example, the air cleaner/purifier 428 may be aprimary mitigation device for reducing particulate and the air handlerunit 136 may be a secondary device for reducing particulate.

The mitigation module 1004 turns on a primary device when its associatedIAQ parameter is greater than a predetermined value or outside of apredetermined range for that IAQ parameter. The mitigation module 1004may also turn on a secondary mitigation device when the primarymitigation device is on.

In the example of the air cleaner/purifier 428 being a primarymitigation device and the air handler unit 136 being a secondarymitigation device for reducing particulate, the mitigation module 1004may turn on the air cleaner/purifier 428 (the primary mitigation device)when the amount of particulate at the air cleaner/purifier 428 isgreater than a predetermined amount of particulate. The mitigationmodule 1004 may also turn on the air handler unit 136 (the secondarymitigation device) when the air cleaner/purifier 428 is turned on.

The mitigation module 1004, however, may not automatically turn on aprimary mitigation device in response to the secondary mitigation devicebeing turned on due to its associated IAQ parameter being greater than apredetermined value or outside of a predetermined range. In the exampleof the air cleaner/purifier 428 being a primary mitigation device andthe air handler unit 136 being a secondary mitigation device forreducing particulate, the mitigation module 1004 may turn on the airhandler unit 136 (the secondary mitigation device) when an amount ofparticulate (e.g., measured by the IAQ sensor module 304) is greaterthan the predetermined amount of particulate. The mitigation module1004, however, may leave the air cleaner/purifier 428 (the primarymitigation device) off despite the air handler unit 136 being turned on.That is, unless an amount of particulate measured by the particulatesensor at the air cleaner/purifier 428 is also greater than thepredetermined amount of particulate.

Under some circumstances, turning on of both the primary mitigationdevice and the secondary mitigation device may cause another IAQparameter to become greater than its predetermined value or outside ofits predetermined range. To avoid this, the mitigation module 1004 mayleave a secondary mitigation device off and maintain a primarymitigation device running for a longer period. Alternatively, themitigation module 1004 may turn on both the primary and secondarymitigation devices and mitigate the other IAQ parameter if the other IAQparameter in fact becomes greater than its predetermined value oroutside of its predetermined range.

In various implementations, the primary/secondary settings mayalternatively specify which one of a set of two or more sensors of oneIAQ parameter is a primary sensor of that set of two or more sensors.The remaining sensors of that set are considered secondary sensors. Forexample, a particulate sensor of the air cleaner/purifier 428 may be aprimary sensor for reducing particulate and the particulate sensor 316of the IAQ sensor module 304 may be a secondary sensor for reducingparticulate.

The mitigation module 1004 turns on a first mitigation device associatedwith the primary sensor when the IAQ parameter measured by the primarysensor is greater than a predetermined value or outside of apredetermined range for that IAQ parameter. The mitigation module 1004also turns on a second mitigation device when the IAQ parameter measuredby the primary sensor is greater than the predetermined value or outsideof the predetermined range for that IAQ parameter. In variousimplementations, the mitigation module 1004 may wait to turn on thesecond mitigation device until the IAQ parameter measured by the primarysensor is greater than a second predetermined value that is greater thanthe predetermined value or outside of a second predetermined range forthat IAQ parameter.

In the example of the particulate sensor of the air cleaner/purifier 428being the primary sensor and the particulate sensor 316 of the IAQsensor module 304 being the secondary sensor, the mitigation module 1004may turn on the air cleaner/purifier 428 (that is associated with theprimary sensor) when the amount of particulate measured by theparticulate sensor at the air cleaner/purifier 428 is greater than apredetermined amount of particulate. The mitigation module 1004 may alsoturn on the air handler unit 136 (that is associated with the secondarysensor) when the amount of particulate measured by the particulatesensor at the air cleaner/purifier 428 is greater than the predeterminedamount of particulate.

The mitigation module 1004, however, does not turn on the firstmitigation device associated with the primary sensor when IAQ parametermeasured by the secondary sensor associated with the second mitigationdevice is greater than the predetermined value or outside of thepredetermined range for that IAQ parameter. In the example of theparticulate sensor of the air cleaner/purifier 428 being the primarysensor and the particulate sensor 316 of the IAQ sensor module 304 beingthe secondary sensor, the mitigation module 1004 may turn on the airhandler unit 136 (that is associated with the secondary sensor) when theamount of particulate measured by the particulate sensor 316 of the IAQsensor module 304 (the secondary sensor) is greater than thepredetermined amount of particulate. The mitigation module 1004,however, may leave the air cleaner/purifier 428 (that is associated withthe primary sensor) off when the amount of particulate measured by theparticulate sensor 316 of the IAQ sensor module 304 (the secondarysensor) is greater than the predetermined amount of particulate. Thatis, unless the amount of particulate measured by the particulate sensorat the air cleaner/purifier 428 is also greater than the predeterminedamount of particulate.

FIGS. 11-14 include example graphs of particulate versus time. In FIG.11, trace 1104 tracks the amount of particulate measured using aparticulate sensor located within a room of a building while the airhandler unit 136 was on and an air cleaner/purifier located within theroom was off to decrease the amount of particulate measured by theparticulate sensor. Trace 1108 tracks the amount of particulate measuredusing the particulate sensor located within the room of the buildingwhile the air handler unit 136 was on and the air cleaner/purifierlocated within the room was on to decrease the amount of particulatemeasured by the particulate sensor. As illustrated by trace 1108, theamount of particulate within the room decreased more quickly when boththe air handler unit 136 and the air cleaner/purifier were on todecrease the amount of particulate measured by the particulate sensor.The mitigation module 1004 turned both the air handler unit 136 and theair cleaner/purifier on due to either the primary mitigation devicebeing turned on or the amount of particulate measured by the primaryparticulate sensor being greater than the predetermined amount ofparticulate.

In FIG. 12, trace 1204 tracks the amount of particulate measured using aparticulate sensor located within a room of a building while the airhandler unit 136 was off and an air cleaner/purifier located within theroom was off. Trace 1208 tracks the amount of particulate measured usingthe particulate sensor located within the room of the building while theair handler unit 136 was off and the air cleaner/purifier located withinthe room was on to decrease the amount of particulate measured by theparticulate sensor. As illustrated by comparing trace 1204 with trace1208 of FIG. 12, the amount of particulate within the room decreasedmore quickly when the air cleaner/purifier was on to decrease the amountof particulate measured by the particulate sensor.

In FIG. 13, trace 1304 tracks the amount of particulate measured using aparticulate sensor located within a room of a building while the airhandler unit 136 was off and an air cleaner/purifier located within theroom was off. Trace 1308 tracks the amount of particulate measured usingthe particulate sensor located within the room of the building while theair handler unit 136 was on to decrease the amount of particulatemeasured by the particulate sensor and the air cleaner/purifier locatedwithin the room was off. As illustrated by comparing trace 1304 withtrace 1308 of FIG. 13, the amount of particulate within the roomdecreased more quickly when the air handler unit 136 was on to decreasethe amount of particulate measured by the particulate sensor.

In FIG. 14, trace 1404 tracks the amount of particulate measured using aparticulate sensor located within a room of a building while the airhandler unit 136 was off and an air cleaner/purifier located within theroom was on. Trace 1408 tracks the amount of particulate measured usingthe particulate sensor located within the room of the building while theair handler unit 136 was on and the air cleaner/purifier located withinthe room was on to decrease the amount of particulate measured by theparticulate sensor. As illustrated by trace 1408, the amount ofparticulate within the room decreased more quickly when both the airhandler unit 136 and the air cleaner/purifier was on to decrease theamount of particulate measured by the particulate sensor.

The trend exhibited is also applicable to other types of mitigationdevices used to mitigate other IAQ parameters. For example, the amountof VOCs within a room may decrease more quickly when the ventilator 440and a ventilator of the room (e.g., 460) are both on to decrease theamount of VOCs. The amount of carbon dioxide within a room may decreasemore quickly when the ventilator 440 and a ventilator of the room (e.g.,460) are both on to decrease the amount of carbon dioxide. The RH withina room may decrease more quickly when the dehumidifier 436 and adehumidifier within the room are both on to decrease the RH. The RHwithin a room may increase more quickly when the humidifier 432 and ahumidifier within the room are both on to increase the RH. Thetemperature within a room may increase more quickly when the heatingfunction of the air handler unit 136 and a heater within the room areboth on to increase the temperature. The temperature within a room maydecrease more quickly when the cooling function of the air handler unit136 and the condensing unit 164 and an A/C unit within the room are bothon to decrease the temperature.

FIG. 15 includes a functional block diagram of an example buildingincluding the IAQ sensor module 304, the IAQ control module 404, and anIAQ system 1504 for the building. The IAQ system 1504 may include theair handler unit 136 and the condensing unit 164 of the building. TheIAQ system 1504 may also include one or more other air handler units andone or more other condensing units in buildings that include multipleair handler units and/or multiple condensing units. The IAQ controlmodule 404 and/or the thermostat 208 control operation of the IAQ system1504, for example, based on the IAQ parameters from the IAQ sensormodule 304 and or the measurements from the thermostat 208.

FIG. 16 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding a room 1604 and a (standalone) mitigation device 1608 locatedwithin the room 1604. The mitigation device 1608 may be one of thestandalone (or room) mitigation devices described above (e.g., 444, 448,452, 456, 460). The mitigation device 1608 includes a sensor 1612 and acontrol module 1616. The IAQ sensor 1612 is connected to the controlmodule 1616 by wire or wirelessly. The IAQ sensor 1612 may be fixed tothe mitigation device 1608. In various implementations, the IAQ sensor1612 may be separable from the mitigation device 1608 and moveable by adistance corresponding to a length of wire connected to the IAQ sensor1612 or a distance for wireless connections. The IAQ sensor 1612 sensesan IAQ parameter that the mitigation device 1608 is configured to vary.

The control module 1616 may control operation of the mitigation device1608 based on the IAQ parameter measured by the IAQ sensor 1612. Forexample, the mitigation device 1608 may be an air cleaner/purifier andthe IAQ sensor 1612 may measure an amount of particulate in the air atthe mitigation device 1608. The control module 1616 may turn the aircleaner/purifier on when the amount of particulate measured by the IAQsensor 1612 is greater than a predetermined amount of particulate.

In various implementations, a second IAQ sensor 1620 may be included andsenses the IAQ parameter that the mitigation device 1608 is configuredto vary. The second IAQ sensor 1620 may be an IAQ sensor module like theIAQ sensor module 304 described above. In the example of the mitigationdevice 1608 being an air cleaner/purifier, the second IAQ sensor 1620may measure an amount of particulate in the air. The control module 1616may turn the air cleaner/purifier on when at least one of: (a) theamount of particulate measured by the IAQ sensor 1612 is greater than apredetermined amount of particulate; and (b) the amount of particulatemeasured by the second IAQ sensor 1620 is greater than the predeterminedamount of particulate.

FIG. 17 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding the room 1604 and the (standalone) mitigation device 1608located within the room 1604. As discussed above, the mitigation module1004 may coordinate operation of one or more mitigation devices of thebuilding IAQ system 1504 and the mitigation device 1608 based on theprimary/secondary settings. When the mitigation device 1608 is asecondary mitigation device, the control module 1616 may also turn onthe mitigation device 1608 when the same type of mitigation device ofthe building IAQ system 1504 is turned on.

FIG. 18 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding the room 1604, the (standalone) mitigation device 1608 locatedwithin the room 1604, a second room 1804, and a second (standalone)mitigation device 1808 located within the second room 1804. FIG. 18illustrates that the concept of FIG. 17 is not limited to one room.

FIG. 19 includes a functional block diagram of the example buildingincluding the (standalone) mitigation device 1608 and the second(standalone) mitigation device 1808. FIG. 19 illustrates that thecontrol of operation of multiple standalone mitigation devices can becoordinated.

FIG. 20 includes a flowchart depicting an example method of coordinatingcontrol of multiple mitigation devices. In the example of FIG. 20, theexample of the mitigation device 1608 (e.g. the air cleaner/purifier428) being the primary mitigation device and the corresponding type ofmitigation device (e.g., the air handler unit 136) being the secondarymitigation device will be discussed for purposes of discussion only.

Control may begin with 2004 where the mitigation module 1004 receivesthe IAQ parameter (e.g., amount of particulate) associated with thesecondary device (e.g., from the IAQ sensor module 304). At 2008, themitigation module 1004 determines whether the primary mitigation device(e.g., the air cleaner/purifier 428) is on. As discussed above, thecontrol module 1616 may turn on the mitigation device 1608 when the IAQparameter (e.g., the amount of particulate) measured by the IAQ sensor1612 (or 1620) is greater than a predetermined value. If 2008 is true(i.e., the primary mitigation device is on), the mitigation module 1004turns the secondary mitigation device (e.g., the air handler unit 136)on at 2012, and control returns to 2004. If 2008 is false (i.e., theprimary mitigation device is off), control transfers to 2016.

At 2016, the mitigation module 1004 determines whether the IAQ parameter(e.g., amount of particulate) associated with the secondary mitigationdevice (e.g., from the IAQ sensor module 304) is greater than apredetermined value or outside of a predetermined range. If 2016 istrue, the mitigation module 1004 may turn on the secondary mitigationdevice (e.g., the air handler unit 136) at 2020, and control may returnto 2004. This, however, does not cause the primary mitigation device tobe turned on. If 2016 is false, the mitigation module 1004 may leave thesecondary mitigation device (e.g., the air handler unit 136) off at2024, and control may return to 2004.

FIG. 21 includes a flowchart depicting an example method of coordinatingcontrol of multiple mitigation devices. In the example of FIG. 21, theexample of the IAQ sensor 1612 (e.g., a particulate sensor) being theprimary sensor and a sensor of the IAQ sensor module 304 (e.g., theparticulate sensor 316) will be discussed for purposes of discussiononly.

Control may begin with 2104 where the mitigation module 1004 receivesthe IAQ parameter measured by the IAQ sensor 1612 (the primary sensor)and the same IAQ parameter measured by the IAQ sensor module 304 (thesecondary sensor). At 2108, the mitigation module 1004 determineswhether the IAQ parameter measured by the IAQ sensor 1612 (the primarysensor) is greater than a predetermined value (e.g., a predeterminedamount of particulate) or outside of a predetermined range. If 2108 istrue, the mitigation module 1004 turns a mitigation device of thebuilding IAQ system 1504 (e.g., the air handler unit 136) on at 2112,and control returns to 2104. Based on the IAQ parameter measured by theIAQ sensor 1612 (the primary sensor) being greater than thepredetermined value (e.g., the predetermined amount of particulate) oroutside of the predetermined range, the control module 1616 also turnson the mitigation device 1608 at 2112. If 2108 is false, controltransfers to 2116.

At 2116, the mitigation module 1004 determines whether the IAQ parametermeasured by the IAQ sensor module 304 (the secondary sensor) is greaterthan the predetermined value (e.g., the predetermined amount ofparticulate) or outside of the predetermined range. If 2116 is true, themitigation module 1004 may turn on the mitigation device of the buildingIAQ system 1504 (e.g., the air handler unit 136) at 2120, and controlmay return to 2104. This, however, does not cause the control module1616 to also turn on the mitigation device 1608. If 2116 is false, themitigation module 1004 may leave the mitigation device of the buildingIAQ system 1504 (e.g., the air handler unit 136) off at 2124, andcontrol may return to 2104. Based on the IAQ parameter measured by theIAQ sensor 1612 (the primary sensor) being less than the predeterminedvalue (e.g., the predetermined amount of particulate) or within thepredetermined range, the control module 1616 may also maintain or turnthe mitigation device off 1608 at 2124.

The foregoing description is merely illustrative in nature and is in noway intended to limit the disclosure, its application, or uses. Thebroad teachings of the disclosure can be implemented in a variety offorms. Therefore, while this disclosure includes particular examples,the true scope of the disclosure should not be so limited since othermodifications will become apparent upon a study of the drawings, thespecification, and the following claims. It should be understood thatone or more steps within a method may be executed in different order (orconcurrently) without altering the principles of the present disclosure.Further, although each of the embodiments is described above as havingcertain features, any one or more of those features described withrespect to any embodiment of the disclosure can be implemented in and/orcombined with features of any of the other embodiments, even if thatcombination is not explicitly described. In other words, the describedembodiments are not mutually exclusive, and permutations of one or moreembodiments with one another remain within the scope of this disclosure.

Spatial and functional relationships between elements (for example,between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers, etc.) aredescribed using various terms, including “connected,” “engaged,”“coupled,” “adjacent,” “next to,” “on top of,” “above,” “below,” and“disposed.” Unless explicitly described as being “direct,” when arelationship between first and second elements is described in the abovedisclosure, that relationship can be a direct relationship where noother intervening elements are present between the first and secondelements, but can also be an indirect relationship where one or moreintervening elements are present (either spatially or functionally)between the first and second elements. As used herein, the phrase atleast one of A, B, and C should be construed to mean a logical (A OR BOR C), using a non-exclusive logical OR, and should not be construed tomean “at least one of A, at least one of B, and at least one of C.”

In the figures, the direction of an arrow, as indicated by thearrowhead, generally demonstrates the flow of information (such as dataor instructions) that is of interest to the illustration. For example,when element A and element B exchange a variety of information butinformation transmitted from element A to element B is relevant to theillustration, the arrow may point from element A to element B. Thisunidirectional arrow does not imply that no other information istransmitted from element B to element A. Further, for information sentfrom element A to element B, element B may send requests for, or receiptacknowledgements of, the information to element A.

In this application, including the definitions below, the term “module”or the term “controller” may be replaced with the term “circuit.” Theterm “module” may refer to, be part of, or include: an ApplicationSpecific Integrated Circuit (ASIC); a digital, analog, or mixedanalog/digital discrete circuit; a digital, analog, or mixedanalog/digital integrated circuit; a combinational logic circuit; afield programmable gate array (FPGA); a processor circuit (shared,dedicated, or group) that executes code; a memory circuit (shared,dedicated, or group) that stores code executed by the processor circuit;other suitable hardware components that provide the describedfunctionality; or a combination of some or all of the above, such as ina system-on-chip.

The module may include one or more interface circuits. In some examples,the interface circuits may include wired or wireless interfaces that areconnected to a local area network (LAN), the Internet, a wide areanetwork (WAN), or combinations thereof. The functionality of any givenmodule of the present disclosure may be distributed among multiplemodules that are connected via interface circuits. For example, multiplemodules may allow load balancing. In a further example, a server (alsoknown as remote, or cloud) module may accomplish some functionality onbehalf of a client module.

The term code, as used above, may include software, firmware, and/ormicrocode, and may refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, datastructures, and/or objects. The term shared processor circuitencompasses a single processor circuit that executes some or all codefrom multiple modules. The term group processor circuit encompasses aprocessor circuit that, in combination with additional processorcircuits, executes some or all code from one or more modules. Referencesto multiple processor circuits encompass multiple processor circuits ondiscrete dies, multiple processor circuits on a single die, multiplecores of a single processor circuit, multiple threads of a singleprocessor circuit, or a combination of the above. The term shared memorycircuit encompasses a single memory circuit that stores some or all codefrom multiple modules. The term group memory circuit encompasses amemory circuit that, in combination with additional memories, storessome or all code from one or more modules.

The term memory circuit is a subset of the term computer-readablemedium. The term computer-readable medium, as used herein, does notencompass transitory electrical or electromagnetic signals propagatingthrough a medium (such as on a carrier wave); the term computer-readablemedium may therefore be considered tangible and non-transitory.Non-limiting examples of a non-transitory, tangible computer-readablemedium are nonvolatile memory circuits (such as a flash memory circuit,an erasable programmable read-only memory circuit, or a mask read-onlymemory circuit), volatile memory circuits (such as a static randomaccess memory circuit or a dynamic random access memory circuit),magnetic storage media (such as an analog or digital magnetic tape or ahard disk drive), and optical storage media (such as a CD, a DVD, or aBlu-ray Disc).

The apparatuses and methods described in this application may bepartially or fully implemented by a special purpose computer created byconfiguring a general purpose computer to execute one or more particularfunctions embodied in computer programs. The functional blocks,flowchart components, and other elements described above serve assoftware specifications, which can be translated into the computerprograms by the routine work of a skilled technician or programmer.

The computer programs include processor-executable instructions that arestored on at least one non-transitory, tangible computer-readablemedium. The computer programs may also include or rely on stored data.The computer programs may encompass a basic input/output system (BIOS)that interacts with hardware of the special purpose computer, devicedrivers that interact with particular devices of the special purposecomputer, one or more operating systems, user applications, backgroundservices, background applications, etc.

The computer programs may include: (i) descriptive text to be parsed,such as HTML (hypertext markup language), XML (extensible markuplanguage), or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) (ii) assembly code,(iii) object code generated from source code by a compiler, (iv) sourcecode for execution by an interpreter, (v) source code for compilationand execution by a just-in-time compiler, etc. As examples only, sourcecode may be written using syntax from languages including C, C++, C#,Objective-C, Swift, Haskell, Go, SQL, R, Lisp, Java®, Fortran, Perl,Pascal, Curl, OCaml, Javascript®, HTMLS (Hypertext Markup Language 5threvision), Ada, ASP (Active Server Pages), PHP (PHP: HypertextPreprocessor), Scala, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Erlang, Ruby, Flash®, VisualBasic®, Lua, MATLAB, SIMULINK, and Python®.

What is claimed is:
 1. An indoor air quality (IAQ) system for abuilding, comprising: a heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning(HVAC) system of the building; a first and second IAQ sensors that arelocated within the building and that are configured to measure first andsecond IAQ parameters, respectively, the first and second IAQ parameterbeing the same one of: relative humidity (RH) of air; amount ofparticulate of at least a predetermined size present in air; amount ofvolatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in air; and amount of carbondioxide present in air; a mitigation device that is separate from theHVAC system and that comprises a control module configured to turn themitigation device on and off based on the first IAQ parameter measuredby the first IAQ sensor; and a mitigation module configured toselectively turn the HVAC system of the building on and off based on thesecond IAQ parameter measured by the second IAQ sensor, wherein thecontrol module is further configured to selectively turn the mitigationdevice on and off further based on at least one of: the second IAQparameter; and whether the HVAC system of the building is on or off; andwherein the mitigation module is further configured to selectively turnthe HVAC system of the building on and off further based on at least oneof: the first IAQ parameter; and whether the mitigation device is on oroff
 2. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the mitigation module isconfigured to: turn the HVAC system of the building on when the secondIAQ parameter is greater than a first predetermined value; and turn theHVAC system of the building off when the second IAQ parameter is lessthan a second predetermined value that is less than the firstpredetermined value.
 3. The IAQ system of claim 2 wherein the mitigationmodule is configured to turn the HVAC system of the building on when thefirst IAQ parameter is greater than a third predetermined value, whereinthe third predetermined value is greater than the second predeterminedvalue.
 4. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the control module isconfigured to turn the mitigation device on and off independently of thefirst IAQ parameter based on at least one of (i) the second IAQparameter and (ii) whether the HVAC system of the building is on or off.5. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the mitigation module is configuredto: turn the HVAC system of the building on in response to themitigation device being turned on; maintain the HVAC system of thebuilding on while the mitigation device is on; and turn the HVAC systemof the building off in response to the mitigation device being turnedoff.
 6. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the mitigation module isconfigured to turn the HVAC system of the building on when at least oneof: the second IAQ parameter is greater than a first predeterminedvalue; and the mitigation device is turned on.
 7. The IAQ system ofclaim 1 wherein the control module is configured to: turn the mitigationdevice on when the first IAQ parameter is greater than a firstpredetermined value; and turn the mitigation device off when the firstIAQ parameter is less than a second predetermined value that is lessthan the first predetermined value.
 8. The IAQ system of claim 7 whereinthe control module is configured to turn the mitigation device on whenthe second IAQ parameter is greater than a third predetermined value,wherein the third predetermined value is greater than the secondpredetermined value.
 9. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the mitigationmodule is configured to turn the HVAC system of the building on and offindependently of the second IAQ parameter based on at least one of (i)the first IAQ parameter and (ii) whether the mitigation device is on oroff
 10. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the control module isconfigured to: turn the mitigation device on in response to the HVACsystem of the building being turned on; maintain the mitigation deviceon while the HVAC system of the building is on; and turn the mitigationdevice off in response to the HVAC system of the building being turnedoff.
 11. The IAQ system of claim 1 wherein the control module isconfigured to turn the mitigation device on when at least one of: thefirst IAQ parameter is greater than a first predetermined value; and theHVAC system of the building is turned on.
 12. A method, comprising: byfirst and second indoor air quality (IAQ) sensors that are locatedwithin a building, measuring first and second IAQ parameters,respectively, the first and second IAQ parameter being the same one of:relative humidity (RH) of air; amount of particulate of at least apredetermined size present in air; amount of volatile organic compounds(VOCs) present in air; and amount of carbon dioxide present in air;turning a mitigation device on and off based on the first IAQ parametermeasured by the first IAQ sensor, wherein the mitigation device isseparate from a heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning (HVAC)system of the building; selectively turning the HVAC system of thebuilding on and off based on the second IAQ parameter measured by thesecond IAQ sensor; selectively turning the mitigation device on and offfurther based on at least one of: the second IAQ parameter; and whetherthe HVAC system of the building is on or off; and selectively turningthe HVAC system of the building on and off further based on at least oneof: the first IAQ parameter; and whether the mitigation device is on oroff
 13. The method of claim 12 further comprising: turning the HVACsystem of the building on when the second IAQ parameter is greater thana first predetermined value; and turning the HVAC system of the buildingoff when the second IAQ parameter is less than a second predeterminedvalue that is less than the first predetermined value.
 14. The method ofclaim 13 further comprising turning the HVAC system of the building onwhen the first IAQ parameter is greater than a third predeterminedvalue, wherein the third predetermined value is greater than the secondpredetermined value.
 15. The method of claim 12 further comprisingturning the mitigation device on and off independently of the first IAQparameter based on at least one of (i) the second IAQ parameter and (ii)whether the HVAC system of the building is on or off.
 16. The method ofclaim 12 further comprising: turning the HVAC system of the building onin response to the mitigation device being turned on; maintaining theHVAC system of the building on while the mitigation device is on; andturning the HVAC system of the building off in response to themitigation device being turned off.
 17. The method of claim 12 furthercomprising turning the HVAC system of the building on when at least oneof: the second IAQ parameter is greater than a first predeterminedvalue; and the mitigation device is turned on.
 18. The method of claim12 further comprising: turning the mitigation device on when the firstIAQ parameter is greater than a first predetermined value; and turningthe mitigation device off when the first IAQ parameter is less than asecond predetermined value that is less than the first predeterminedvalue.
 19. The method of claim 18 further comprising turning themitigation device on when the second IAQ parameter is greater than athird predetermined value, wherein the third predetermined value isgreater than the second predetermined value.
 20. The method of claim 12further comprising turning the HVAC system of the building on and offindependently of the second IAQ parameter based on at least one of (i)the first IAQ parameter and (ii) whether the mitigation device is on oroff.
 21. The method of claim 12 further comprising: turning themitigation device on in response to the HVAC system of the buildingbeing turned on; maintaining the mitigation device on while the HVACsystem of the building is on; and turning the mitigation device off inresponse to the HVAC system of the building being turned off.
 22. Themethod of claim 12 further comprising turning the mitigation device onwhen at least one of: the first IAQ parameter is greater than a firstpredetermined value; and the HVAC system of the building is turned on.